How do you get the binos that show your bearing?

[Whiskey T. Foxtrot]

I have seen screen shots with binos with a direction dial at the top. How do you get this feature? I have GWX 2.1 and no other mods installed except some of the Commander features.

[i_b_spectre]

I believe GWX 2.1 removed the compass display from the binocs. Earlier versions of GWX had it, but the decision was made to take it out.

[Sailor Steve]

Yep. The bearing indicator comes with all versions of the game except GWX 2.1. They removed it partly because it's not realistic, and partly because so many of us requested it. One of them might know how you can put it back in.

[Teh_Diplomat]

I believe GWX 2.1 removed the compass display from the binocs. Earlier versions of GWX had it, but the decision was made to take it out.

I guess in theory it does make sense, but in terms of practicability it's damaging.


Here's why: When your WO reports a spotted Ship/Airplane at a certain bearing it's best to use your Binocs to scope out the target. Realistically I assume the Captain would only use the UZO for surface attacks and not for general reconnaissance as it would be limited in its turn radius -as you obviously could not spin it around 180 degrees unless you were outside the Deck on the railings - thus the bearings were also put onto the binoculars.

The reason I assumed the bearings were on the Binocs was to spot targets and look an a reported target when given reports.


The bearings on a binocs is still more realistic than the UZO spinning around 360 degrees considering where it is placed on the deck.

[bobchase]

Teh_Diplomat

I agree with you but for a slightly different reason. Somewhere on this board Sailor Steve and I discussed it with some other folks. The short version of what I said was that a trained watch stander can call out a relative bearing angle of a sighting within 10 degrees or so. This is because that, unlike in the game, the watch stander gets to know what the bearing angle is of different parts of the ship when seen from his watch station. He gets to take his eyes off the contact, look at his ship on the same bearing, and make a mental calculation of the bearing angle before reporting in on the sound powered phones.

Realism is in the eye of the beholder...

Bob

[Brer Rabbit]

Done chucked my binocs overboard since they are now useless. It is difficult if not impossible to discern which direction you're looking. I cannot even depress them enough to see the bow or the stern much less the wake to even know if I;m looking forward or backward much less port of starboard. So much for realism, but frankly its a small price to pay for the overall package.

[msalama]

Sorry to interrupt you guys, but now that you're talking about the watch officer (amongst other things) let me please ask you something:

How the h*ll does the WO determine the range to the target as accurately as he does, and is his way of doing it realistic?

[joegrundman]

they had simple range finding apparatus, and i think that a practiced eye gets some accuracy - but no - it's not realistic.

Some of us avoid the WO for just this reason

my dream mod (but i don't think it can be done) would be to cut off the last 3 digits so you only get it to the nearest 1000m (rounded down) - that would be more reasonable i think

[msalama]

Thanks Joe :up:

[Platapus]

While I agree with the removal of the bearing markings while using the Binos, I do wish there was some indication of the direction you are looking at.

In real life, looking though binoculars, the observer would still have an idea of where they were looking based on how their body was turning and where their feet have moved. All this is not available unless the lower the binoculars.

Perhaps a compromise would be a small graphical depiction of the relative direction with respect to the orientation of the submarine.

Instead of the binoculars magically telling you that you are looking at 045 relative, the graphic would depict you facing off the starboard bow or something like that.

Enough information so the player can orientate themselves but not exact targeting information that would be unrealistic.

[danlisa]

Perhaps a compromise would be a small graphical depiction of the relative direction with respect to the orientation of the submarine.

Instead of the binoculars magically telling you that you are looking at 045 relative, the graphic would depict you facing off the starboard bow or something like that.

Enough information so the player can orientate themselves but not exact targeting information that would be unrealistic.

For those who want it, I can make a new TGA for just that sort of effect. Maybe using 0, 90, 180, 270 only.:hmm: Or, just open the bearing.tga in a graphics suite and either erase the minor marks or re-paint the alpha channel. Either will work.

BTW for those who want the original bearing marks back, open your menu.ini and find the binos block, you'll see that the tga being used is bearing2.tga (IIRC), change it back to bearing.tga (IIRC) and the game will use the original file I left in there.;) Must have been clarvioant that day.

[Sailor Steve]

I don't see what all the fuss is about. The binoculars are not 'useless' at all. I just do exactly what I would do in real life - turn in the general direction of the given bearing, then put up the binoculars. Works every single time, and feels much more real.

[danurve]

For those who want it, I can make a new TGA for just that sort of effect. Maybe using 0, 90, 180, 270 only.:hmm: Or, just open the bearing.tga in a graphics suite and either erase the minor marks or re-paint the alpha channel. Either will work.

BTW for those who want the original bearing marks back, open your menu.ini and find the binos block, you'll see that the tga being used is bearing2.tga (IIRC), change it back to bearing.tga (IIRC) and the game will use the original file I left in there.;) Must have been clarvioant that day.

Good to know, thank you danlisa. :up:

[predavolk]

For those who want it, I can make a new TGA for just that sort of effect. Maybe using 0, 90, 180, 270 only.:hmm: Or, just open the bearing.tga in a graphics suite and either erase the minor marks or re-paint the alpha channel. Either will work.

BTW for those who want the original bearing marks back, open your menu.ini and find the binos block, you'll see that the tga being used is bearing2.tga (IIRC), change it back to bearing.tga (IIRC) and the game will use the original file I left in there.;) Must have been clarvioant that day.

Good to know, thank you danlisa. :up:

Thanks!

[Hitman]

I just do exactly what I would do in real life - turn in the general direction of the given bearing, then put up the binoculars. Works every single time, and feels much more real.

Yup, me too :D Probably same as you, a habit I got from "real" navigating was to look first with naked eye, then up the binoculars. Since the sea is some uniform, and the binocular view so restricted, you need first to take a reference (A cloud, another ship...) before upping the binocs or you are lost when you only see the restricted field of view they show :up:

[irish1958]

Hitman,
I agree, but I can never do this well enough to spot an aircraft.
Danlisa,
Could you make a couple of tga's with bearings at 0,90,180 and 270; and one with bearings at ten degrees?
Any deck officer worth his salt should be able to aim the binocs within ten degrees both horizontally and vertically without reference.
My skills with alpha channels leave a lot to be desired.

[danurve]

For those interested in getting the "bearing dial" back for the binoculars & UZO in 2.1 I found a down and dirty way to do it but it requires a menu_1024_768 edit.

1.) Always back-up your jazz (file).
2.) Using a good text editor open the menu file and search for "bearing".
3.) You'll find two sections that look like this;
Pos=273,700,180,16
;Pos=273,680,180,16
4.) Switch the ; in both.

[Hartmann]

Is more realistic withouth the bearings , but in real life you can get some orientation looking outside of the oculars of the binoculars.

for this, because the game limitations i prefer use the binocular bearings.

[Hitman]

Is more realistic withouth the bearings , but in real life you can get some orientation looking outside of the oculars of the binoculars.


well in fact one of the reasons the marine binoculars are usually 7x50 is eye-relief, i.e. you can see well with them even if your eyes are not aligned properly with the eyepieces. It is not impossibnle to have moments while the deck swings when you get to see part outside and part through the binocs, which of course helps keeping you orientated.

[danlisa]

For those interested in getting the "bearing dial" back for the binoculars & UZO in 2.1 I found a down and dirty way to do it but it requires a menu_1024_768 edit.

1.) Always back-up your jazz (file).
2.) Using a good text editor open the menu file and search for "bearing".
3.) You'll find two sections that look like this;
Pos=273,700,180,16
;Pos=273,680,180,16
4.) Switch the ; in both.

:-? Umm, the UZO bearing was not touched by GWX 2.1, it is still present in a default installation. I'm not sure how your menu.ini has been changed but that line edit is not needed in GWX 2.1.

Like I said in my post (which you replied to), you only need to search the bearing2.tga reference in the menu.ini (there is only one) and rename it to bearing.tga. The game will do the rest.:up:

[danurve]

Ahh, I think I know what happened.
I went to look & do up the edit you posted, after I installed the 6-dials slide out gui on 2.1. And so I couldn't find that block reference. Sorry for any confusion.

[seafarer]

I don't see what all the fuss is about. The binoculars are not 'useless' at all. I just do exactly what I would do in real life - turn in the general direction of the given bearing, then put up the binoculars. Works every single time, and feels much more real.


:p Gotta agree with you there. What nitwit would go spinning around on a pitching slippery deck with a set of binocs clamped to their eyes! They'd go right on spinning overboard (especially as doing so tends to be very disorienting).

Always first turn to where you want to look, then flic mouse wheel to bino's and scan. Seems natural to me - I never used the bearing indicator pre-GWX2.1 anyway as it just never occurred to me to do it that way.

[Phaedrus]

I don't see what all the fuss is about. The binoculars are not 'useless' at all. I just do exactly what I would do in real life - turn in the general direction of the given bearing, then put up the binoculars. Works every single time, and feels much more real.

+ 1 to Sailor Steve.


It's not that difficult at all.

[msalama]

+1 to Phaedrus.

Is it BTW possible to limit the turn radius of the UZO to, say, +/-75degs or whatever would be realistic? Probably not since this wasn't done in GWX... :-?